A Fool in the Streets of Hagerstown

If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and are unable to support themselves among you,

help them as you would a foreigner and stranger, so they can continue to live among you.

Leviticus 25:35 NIV

 

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  James 1:22-24 NIV

Yesterday, our church distributed food through Gleaner's Mobile Food Pantry.  It was bitterly cold outside and despite our best efforts we had food left over.  The leftovers go to our community Food Pantry to assist families in need.  There was leftover frozen meat, but there were no boxes to put the meat in.  Our pastor suggested that we use a grocery cart from inside the church (used to collect food pantry donations) to transport the meat 3 blocks to the Pantry. We did and with some help the meat was transported to the Pantry.

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”                                                                                                                  I Corinthians 1:26-31 NIV

Learning to the play the fool for 40+ years and loving it !

Over the years, I have done many things in pursuit of serving Jesus.  I have tried many things in trying to be more like Jesus.  Too often the things I do are respectable, honorable, and (well let's face it) they make you look good.  But not today.  Today I was made a fool - a fool serving and living like Jesus.

Perhaps we if we spent more time being foolish and less time being honorable, we understand what it means to truly live like Jesus.